The Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) believes that if the government expert panel, the Forest Advisory Committee, continues with the present level of scrutiny to clear projects in forest land, it will have “serious adverse impact on the forest and wildlife of the country.”

After examining more than 100 projects — of which it has recommended that 49 be cancelled, as first published in The Indian Express today — it has concluded that the FAC’s “functioning” is “flawed and that clearances are given without due consideration to the damage that can be caused to the environment by many of these projects.”

The CEC concludes that the examination and recommendation of the proposals — particularly mining — by private parties have been done in a “perfunctory and arbitrary manner.”

The government is yet to see the last report and respond to these particular instances of “irregularities” pointed out by the CEC. The projects range from wind mills and iron ore mining to large irrigation projects. These include”

• 41 hectares, wind power project, Suzlon Energy

As per Ministry guidelines, the prescribed right of way — the road that connects power lines to windmills — for 33 KV transmission line is 15 m. The CEC says the right of the way has been taken only as 3 m. This has resulted in reduction of forest land required and hence the payment required to be made by the company to the forest department. The forest that falls between different turbines, should be counted as “forest area for the project,” the CEC says. Also, Ministry guidelines provide that subject to feasibility 65 to 70 per cent of the area of wind farms should be utilized for developing pastures and intervening area between wind mills should be planted with dwarf species. This wasn’t factored in by the FAC, says the CEC.

... contd.